Coward, Coward
by Whispi
Summary: Oneshot. Luke didn't want to leave her, he wanted to help fight off the monsters.


**A/N: This is the first thing I've published in. . .a long time. I wrote it for a challenge on a Percy Jackson FanFiction Challenges forum. Just something to ease back into writing.

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I thought my lungs were going to explode. I was used to running in short bursts, but this, this constant sprinting was something else entirely. Also, if this were a storybook, then the night air would be cool and crisp, because "cool night air" is a phrase just too cliché not to put into a book of kids' stories. The night air was far from cool, and the humidity was incredible. The air felt heavy, lifeless, with no breeze to ruffle the grass and to stir up the tall pine trees.

"Luke," the gasping voice of a winded seven year-old said from beside me, "I'm tired. I want to stop."

"No, Annabeth," I told her. "We have to keep going."

"But I'm tired."

"Just a little farther," came Grover's voice from behind us. The satyr sounded tense, hyper-alert.

"Come on, Annabeth," Thalia spoke from my right. "We have to get to this…place before –"

_Before all the monsters catch up with us and kill you, Thalia_, I finished silently. No use in freaking Annabeth out.

We were silent for a long time. Silent except for our laborious breathing and pounding footfalls, that is. The road was long and winding, a simple two-lane country road. Trees stood tall at attention on either side; the half moon provided barely enough light to see by.

Suddenly, Grover gasped.

"What?" I asked.

"I hear something!" he exclaimed.

Thalia snorted. "_I_ don't hear anything."

"You know my ears are better than yours…"

I listened, and pretty soon I could hear the inhuman screams of the Furies mixed with the deafening snarls of a few very large dogs. I also heard footsteps, keeping time with each other as well as an orchestra. A small army of – what? Undead warriors, probably. Oh Hades. Literally.

"I can hear them, Thalia," I told her. "Grover's right."

"Well, I can hear them _now_," she grumbled.

We sped up. So did the monsters. I couldn't see them because of how the road twisted, but I could tell that they were gaining.

"Come on," Grover encouraged, even though he was at the back of the group. "We're almost there!"

The noise of Hades' minions had grown thunderous. I looked back, and a thrill of terror shot through me. I could see them clearly, only about forty yards behind us.

Fear gave me the energy I needed. I surged ahead of Thalia, grabbing hold of Annabeth's hand and pulling her along.

"Turn left here!" Grover yelled hoarsely. "Up the hill!"

But we had no time. The distance between us and certain death was twenty yards and decreasing. Dread settled over me as I realized that we were going to die. Months of running away, of hiding, of starving, of freezing to death on park benches, and we were going to be overtaken only a few yards from our destination.

Annabeth was crying – out of fear, exhaustion, hunger, or whatever else. Thalia had caught up to me, a look of grim determination on her face; on Grover's face was sheer panic. I hoped I looked as brave as Thalia, but that could never have happened. She was the bravest person I knew.

She stopped. I stopped, and since I had Annabeth's hand tight in my grasp, she had to stop, too. Grover, still five steps behind, smacked into Thalia before stumbling up the hill with a hasty apology.

"What are you doing?" I growled. "We have to get away!"

"They're going to catch us," Thalia said matter-of-factly. "Soon."

"That's why we have to run!" Grover reminded her.

She turned to look at him. "You take Annabeth and run, now!"

"No! Thalia!" he gasped.

"Go!"

I'm you're protector! I can't fail!" He sounded desperate, pleading.

"This is not about you getting a job done!" Thalia snapped. "I can distract them."

Grover shrank away from her fury. He grabbed Annabeth's hand and took off; if I didn't know better, I could have sworn he was crying.

Thalia stood and looked at me. "Well?" she snarled. "Go!"

I looked at her, bewildered. "But we need to fight off the monsters."

She glared at me. "There is no _we_ in this, Luke. Go."

I realized what she was saying. "But, we're a team…"

"Luke! I don't care! Get away!"

"No. I'm helping you."

I had never seen her madder. "You can help me by going after Grover!"

"Please, Thals!" I pleaded, screaming now. "You have to let me help!"

"You idiot! I do not _have_ to do anything!" She was screaming, too. "YOU – GET – AWAY!"

I didn't move.

Furious, she lunged at me and pushed me as hard as she could. It sent me staggering backwards onto my behind; I felt tears welling up, but they had nothing to do with the fall. I turned, fighting angry tears as I ran.

When I had gotten to the other side of the hill and dared to look back, Thalia was running too. Blood gushed from a wound in her arm, and her teeth were gritted in pain. Her spear was broken, and she held only the bottom half. As I watched, she stumbled and fell, her mouth open in a cry too soft for me to hear. Triumphant monsters surged to the top of the hill where she lay.

Adrenaline pumped through my body, obliterating my vision for a few short seconds. An inhuman scream tore through my throat, and I lunged toward Thalia. A pair of strong arms snaked around my waist, restraining me. I fought them blindly, biting, kicking, scratching, but the grip only tightened.

A sudden flash of light startled me enough to make me stop resisting. I looked up just in time to see lightning fork down from the sky and disintegrate most of the monsters, even though he sky had been clear moments before.

A tall man was standing over Thalia. I couldn't see his expression, but his body language told me that he wasn't happy about this.

"HADES!" he bellowed. "You'll regret this!"

I struggled against the arms. I had to get to Thalia!

But something was wrong. The man raised his hand, and Thalia stood. No, not stood. She was raised into an upright position, her feet just a little off the ground, which was stained red with her blood. I strained again, futilely.

There was another blinding flash of light, and I let out a strangled cry. Where Thalia had been moments before was now a large pine tree.

I screamed and tore through the arms holding me, streaking up the hill to where this man stood. _Whoever he was, he must be an enemy_, I thought, almost hysterically. I lunged at him, screaming wordlessly.

He flicked his hand and sent me crashing backwards down the hill with enough force to knock the breath out of me. Then he disappeared.

I staggered toward the tree. "Thalia!" I shrieked. "THALIA!" I repeated her name, over and over, as if that might bring her back. I fell to my knees, hitting the tree with both fists. "Thalia, I'm sorry!" I tasted salt; I hadn't realized I was crying. "I shouldn't have listened! I should have stayed! Come back, please!"

The arms had followed me up the hill. They didn't grab me this time, but put both their hands on my shoulders.

"Come, Luke," a voice said, presumably coming from the same body that the arms were attached to. "There's nothing you can do."

"It's my fault!" I bellowed. "I let her go! I let her fight them alone!"

"It was no more your fault that it was anyone else's," the voice said gently. "Now come with me. My name is Chiron."

"YOU – DON'T – UNDERSTAND! I screamed. "I was a coward! I let her die!" I collapsed on the ground, beating it with my fists. "I DESERVE TO DIE!" I dug my fingernails into the side of my face, feeling hysterical satisfaction at the blood that welled up there. I unsheathed my sword and swung wildly, not caring what part of myself I hit. Pain erupted at the bottom of my thigh, and I grinned insanely at the fountain of blood that was flowing from the wound. "COWARD! COWARD!

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I unscrewed the vial of poison carefully, though my hands shook. I had committed, and I could _not_ back out. Beads of sweat appeared on my brow, but I was sure they weren't there just because of the summer heat.

I hesitated. Was this what I really wanted to do? _Yes_, I decided. _This is all _for_ Thalia. It's revenge. No, justice. The gods killed her. This is what I have to do to help bring them down._

I closed my eyes and tipped the vial before I could change my mind. I angrily blinked away my tears and turned away. I hated myself.

"I'm sorry, Thalia."

I could almost hear the breeze whispering in the pine needles: _Coward, coward.

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_**A/N: Thanks for reading. Review please!  
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